Vision-Aid Celebrates its Youth Ambassadors for 2023

Vision-Aid, the Lexington based non-profit serving the visually impaired, recognized several outstanding youth and community members for their significant contributions to the cause in 2023. These remarkable young volunteers were recognized with the Vision-Aid Ambassador Medals for 2023, for their incredible display of talent, passion, and commitment to making a difference for the visually impaired over the course of the year. 

The awardees for this year include: Divyashri Prasath, Viritha Reddy, Roopa Modha, Amal Balachundar, Dyuthi Prashanth, Sarayu Gadam, Krithi Sekaran and Vaidehi Moorthy. 

Divyashri Prasath is a college freshman pursuing a Science degree at the University of Georgia. She has been under the guidance of Smt. Jeyanthi Ghatraju and completed her arangetram in 2023. Divya obtained her certificate in performing arts from Alagappa University, Karaikudi, India, in 2022. She has performed at numerous fund raisers for the past twelve years, along with Vision-Aid productions and aspires to continue dance throughout her life. Alongside Bharatanatyam, Divya has earned several levels of distinction in piano and started her high school years as a volunteer piano teacher. She founded the first Georgia Notelove chapter, expanding this non profit and its special cause to a new state. As a UNICEF leader at her high school she enjoyed organizing many fundraisers and awareness events to help children in need all around the world. Divya was awarded the United States Presidential gold award for her community service by Vision-Aid.  

Viritha Reddy (Viri) is a Senior at Lexington High School and has been learning Bharatanatyam for ten years under Guru Smt. Kalpana Balachundhar and Sri. K. Sarveshan. She completed her arangetram in 2023. From a young age, Viri takes great  interest in her Indian heritage and enjoys learning about Indian mythology and is an avid story listener.  Viri is involved in peer tutoring, learning French, and coding, apart from dance. Viri has participated in Vision-Aid's  annual fundraiser productions for the last several years. In addition, Viri participates in the Spoken English Program for Vision-Aid, enabling the visually impaired to build on their English-speaking skills. Going forward, she plans to continue to make a difference in the lives of others, inspired by her experience with Vision-Aid. Viri was awarded the United States Presidential gold award for her community service by Vision-Aid.

Roopa Modha is an intellectual property law attorney, TV host, author, lyricist, illustrator, journalist, international pageant queen, dancer and dance teacher. Roopa excels at many styles of dance - bharatanatyam, kuchipudi, odissi, semi-classical, ballet, tap, jazz, and Bollywood. A recipient of many awards from around the world for dance, law, and her work for girls’ education, she was honored by the White House as a Changemaker in 2017 and has been conferred titles like Wonder Woman (Malta House), Most Inspiring Woman of the Earth 2022, Most Phenomenal Woman of the World 2022, Shine of Indian Classical Dance, Nritya Medhini, and was a recipient of Vrindrani Award 2022.

Amal Balachundhar, a freshman Lexington MA, has been learning dance from his mother, Smt. Kalpana Balachundhar for the past ten years. Also learning Cello and Carnatic Music, Amal is very passionate about music and the arts. Amal has been participating consistently in Vision-Aid productions for the past several years.

Sarayu Gadam is a 9th grader at the Braintree High School and currently learns Bharathanatyam from Smt. Jeyanthi Ghatraju. She has trained under Smt. Swathi Anala in the past. Sarayu is passionate about Carnatic music and enjoys reading, playing tennis, and participating in service activities. She is thrilled to participate in her third Vision-Aid production and support this noble cause.

Krithi Sekaran is a recent graduate of Bentley University, and is currently working as a UX writer. She has been learning Bharatanatyam for the past 15 years. In 2017, she completed her arangetram in New Jersey under Guru Suba Parmar, and now continues learning under Guru Jeyanthi Ghatraju at Natyanjali School of Dance. She was excited to take part in her first Vision-Aid production this year and support a great cause.

Dyuthi Prashanth is a 15 year-old dancer who has been training under Guru Smt. Poornima Risbud for 8 years. She is very passionate about robotics, as well as a variety of performing arts, including musical theater, chorus, and orchestra. Additionally, she is very grateful that she gets to express her passion for dance through Vision-Aid yet again this year!

Vaidehi Moorthy is 17 years old and pursues the art of Bharathanatyam under the guidance of Smt. Sripriya Natarajan Moorthy and Kum. Kavya Muralidharan.  She is grateful to participate in her 11th Vision-Aid production under Guru Muralidaran.

Last but certainly not the least, Vision-Aid congratulates and thanks the Co-Chair of the Council of Ambassadors, Jeyanthi Ghatraju, who is a Bharathanatyam dancer and choreographer with a mission to perform for charity. She is the Founding Artistic Director of Vision-Aid productions since 2009. She offers online Certificate and Degree Programs in Performing Arts through her affiliation with Alagappa Performing Arts Academy through her dance school, Natyanjali, in Westford, MA, which celebrated its 25th Anniversary in 2019. She was awarded the coveted US Presidential Gold Service Award in 2014 and 2018 for her community service and is a recipient of Massachusetts Cultural Council grants since 2019.

Mr. Lalit Sudan, Volunteer President of Vision-Aid congratulating the youth said, “Rarely does one come across such talented youth that are willing to dedicate so 

much time and energy to the cause of the Visually Impaired with amazing enthusiasm and energy. Truly they are an inspiration to all of us. It is my great pleasure and privilege to congratulate Divya, Viri, Roopa, Amal, Dyuti, Sarayu, Krithi, and Vaidehi, for their exemplary compassion and contributions.“ 

Mrs Veena Handa, the volunteer Vice Chair of Vision-Aid, expressed her sentiments, saying, "I feel truly honored to congratulate each and every one of our youth ambassadors for going above and beyond in their exemplary contributions to the noble cause of helping the visually impaired. Your efforts have undoubtedly made their lives better, allowing them to live with independence and dignity. We are immensely proud of the work you do to raise awareness and funds for this worthy cause. Your actions bring to mind the wisdom of Aesop: 'No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted,' and the words of Ben Carson: 'Happiness doesn’t result from what we get, but from what we give.'"

Mrs Revathy Ramakrishna, Co-Founder and volunteer VP of Vision-Aid, who drives the annual event for Vision-Aid, closely works with the Producer Mr. Ramachandran Muralidharan and Artistic Directors Jeyanthi Ghatraju and Sripriya Natarajan Moorthy, along with all the volunteer dancers. She added, "Each year, Jeyanthi, Priya, and I have the pleasure of working together, along with several leading dancers in our community, to watch these amazing productions blossom into unique and memorable choreographies. It is the honor of my lifetime to work with such a dedicated team of talented volunteers. On behalf of Vision-Aid, I sincerely thank all volunteers and congratulate all the Youth Ambassadors of 2023 for their outstanding achievements and well-deserved recognition."

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